Ocean Spray, after decades with Arnold, looks to expand agency roster

After more than 20 years of working with Arnold, Ocean Spray is looking to shake up its agency roster.

SelectResources International is running the review. Arnold—which Ocean Spray credited five years ago with keeping its cranberry grower-owner advertisements "fresh"—is not believed to be defending the account.

"We are extremely proud of our 20-plus-year relationship with Arnold and all the work we have done together to build the Ocean Spray brand," a spokeswoman wrote in an email to Ad Age. "As we work to expand our portfolio and cause disruption in the food and beverage space, we feel it is important for us to look at our business differently, both internally, as well as how we work with agency partners. We look forward to expanding our roster of agencies to help fuel the next chapter of the brand's success."

In February, the Lakeville-Middleboro, Massachusetts-based company announced President and CEO Randy Papadellis would be leaving after 18 years at the company. At the time, Ocean Spray named Bobby Chacko, who had been serving as a senior vp and chief growth officer since 2017, as president and chief operating officer. A month later, the company said its board of directors had unanimously elected Chacko as its CEO. He also still holds the president role.

Arnold has seen some changes itself recently. In late April, Ad Age reported, the agency's CEO Pam Hamlin and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer Scott Feyler were planning to depart the agency.

Ocean Spray has been on a mission to prove the health benefits of its products. It announced last year it would invest more than $10 million the following five years to research the antimicrobial benefits of cranberries, and the role any benefits might play in combating antimicrobial resistance. Its Ocean Spray Cranberry Health Institute was set to launch this year.

Megan Graham is an agency reporter at Ad Age. Prior to joining Ad Age in 2017, she covered technology and startups for the Chicago Tribune's Blue Sky Innovation section. Earlier in her career, she covered business and breaking news at the Chicago Sun-Times. Originally from Chicago, she earned her B.A. in news-editorial journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.